Ronnie Wood, the Rolling Stones guitarist, has entered rehab for a drinking problem, it was announced yesterday.

"Following Ronnie's continued battle with alcohol he has entered a period of rehab," his spokesman said in London. "His close family and friends say he is seeking help and look forward to his recovery."

Wood - like the rest of the Rolling Stones - has a long history of substance abuse. During his last severe bout, Keith Richards was said to have threatened him with a knife and pistol to try to persuade Wood to sober up. Wood told reporters last year that it was his wife, Jo, and Mick Jagger who persuaded him to enter rehab before the band's 2002 world tour.

Despite these challenges, Ronnie Wood seemed in recent years to be doing well - making paintings as well as music, and selling these to several London galleries.

A string of recent newspaper reports, however, has painted a grim picture, with stories of a drunken Wood gallivanting in Ireland with a Russian cocktail waitress. His relationship with Jo, to whom he has been married 23 years, was seen to be at risk.

Wood's spokesman did not provide any details about the length or nature of the guitarist's treatment, nor the clinic at which he is staying.